Quick change: Beyonce changed her outfit several times during the show (Picture: PA)

She was meant to be the ultimate crowd pleaser – but Beyoncé Knowles was booed and savaged online after her performance at Virgin Media’s V Festival.

The diva’s 17-track set got off on the wrong foot at the festival’s Chelmsford site on Saturday when she left feverish fans sodden in the rain by turning up at Beyonce O’clock – which meant 20 minutes late.

‘Boo-yonce! Crowds ain’t happy she is late at V Festival! 20mins in the rain and counting…’ tweeted one angry spectator.

Not even seven outfit changes and her new blonde hairdo could rescue the show after she was then blighted by a technical hitch.

It proved to be the last straw for her drenched fans, with many abandoning the performance in their droves.

One angry fan told Metro: ‘The sound was so terrible people were just walking away halfway through her set.’

For her millions of fans watching from the dry warmth of their homes, there was equal disappointment when the US singer’s performance was dramatically pulled from Channel 4’s broadcast at the last minute.

Presenters Edith Bowman and Steve Jones pointed the finger at the superstar when they indicated to viewers that she’d refused to clear her performance for the broadcast.

It sparked a furious backlash on Twitter with gutted fans claiming they’d been ‘cheated’.